Life is what happens to you while you are busy making other plans. ~ John Lennon

Did you have big plans for the garden this year?Of course you did.

Did you make it happen?

If your answer is yes: Congratulations! You have managed to find a work/garden balance and are winning at life. We admire your accomplishment and dream of the day we can be just like you.

​If your answer is no: Welcome! You have found your tribe!

Here is the truth about gardening. It's hard. It's time consuming. It's dirty, hot and ungrateful. It is sometimes buggy. It never cuts you a break. Miss a water day? Come back to a crime scene of plants all laid out, shriveled up and shooting out giant rays of guilt trips.

Even the cat is judging me.

​Forget to get that mulch down? Welcome to the Wild World of Weeds.

Even though we have dreamed all year of having that "Ahhhhh" garden moment,

sometimes we just have to be realistic. It's not happening. At least, not the way we planned it.​ But that doesn't mean we are defeated. It only means we need to change how we measure success. If life gets too busy to maintain the king sized garden of our dreams and you are feeling overwhelmed, maybe it's time to get back to basics. ​ The smallest, most manageable garden ever.

One Pot

A simple, perfect, pocket garden.

Completely manageable and dare I say it? FUN.

This is a win. It's a compromise, a revision, a Plan B. But a Win, nonetheless.​ When I started blogging our story six years ago, I had an idea that anyone could be a farmer. You only need to be able to grow and nurture a plant or animal for the purpose of feeding yourself and your family. I still believe that is true. Farmers are not defined by the number of acres they manage, but by the intent of their heart. ​ So, quit with the judgments. Stop killing yourself to make a Pinterest-worthy, Instagram-ready Garden of Eden. That isn't the point, and never was. Take a deep breath, relax and let go of what isn't working. Take the stress out of the garden and put the love back in. Keep it simple. Make it fun. Don't worry that you won't have enough, this year the Farmer's Market will get your business. That's ok. They'll be happy to see you.​ Next year, or the year after, you can build it again. Or not. When the time comes, you'll know what feels right. But for now, life is calling you, go ahead and live it. The weeds can wait.

Leave a Reply.

Hi, I'm Sue Pranskus, and this is my sometime blog. It's mostly about my attempts to "green-up" my life. On our little farm we experiment with livestock, gardening, building, repurposing and anything else that we find interesting. Born and bred on the West Coast, I am living in the Midwest by choice, not circumstance. I have built a life based largely on core values and loosely on whimsy. It's that whimsy, though, that gets me in trouble every time!